Spanish tourists start a return to the Costa del Sol

After a bit of a break, most probably due to the economic crisis, local tourists are now back on the Costa del Sol.

 Beach at Torremolinos 

Torremolinos is now the second most popular destination in the country, second only to Benidorm, in terms of hotel occupancy.

Good news indeed for local tourism in southern Spain, as tourism figures for May confirm an increase in the popularity of the Costa del Sol for Spaniards, after a two-year decrease in occupancy.

Sur in English says that INE (National Institute of Statistics) is reporting that domestic tourism figures are up by 20.6% in May compared with 2012, and the number of hotel nights are up by 19%.  This all adds up to an additional 25,383 Spanish visitors, staying 57,000 more nights than they did in May last year.

The positive upward trend coincides with the campaigns launched by the Junta de Andalucía and central government to encourage Spaniards to "holiday at home."  With a country as versatile as Spain, the possibilities are, of course, endless.

Reportedly, the numbers of foreign tourists visiting the Costa del Sol also increased in May by 13%, which meant a 12% increase in overnight hotel stays.

INE reckons that 301,934 foreign tourists visited the Costa in May, reserving 1,258,199 nights in hotels.

So far, Torremolinos has benefited most from the increases and is now second only to Benidorm for hotel occupancy.

May saw 79.7% of Torremolinos hotels booked, an increase of 13% on overnight stays compared with the same time the previous year, bringing a total of around 495,000. 

Generally in Andalucía there was an increase in hotel stays of 11.4 per cent in May.

Good news indeed for a country who relies so much on tourism, especially during these difficult times.

Naomi Campbell in Puerto Banús, Marbella on the Costa del Sol

Latest news from Puerto Banús is a celebrity spotting - it seems super-model Naomi Campbell is on the scene, possibly to recover from her separation from her rich Russian boyfriend.

Naomi is apparently spending her summer holidays on the Costa del Sol, at the invitation of a wealthy Saudi family.

Sur in English is reporting that, just a fortnight ago, German supermodel Claudia Schiffer was spotted out and about on the Costa, and now Naomi Campbell is in town.

All reports are saying that she looks fantastic, even though now aged 43, and despite her separation from the Russian millionaire Vladislav Doronin, she looks as though she hasn't got a care in the world.

Known throughout the world as the ‘ebony goddess’, Naomi reportedly interrupted her initial stay in the sunshine by flying to Paris for its fashion week. Then she was invited back to Marbella by a wealthy Saudi sheikh and his family.

She has since been seen several times dining out at the Antonio restaurant, in the company of her hosts. 

Now everyone is wondering if she is just on holiday, or possibly looking for yet another suitor?  Seems Puerto Banús and Marbella are the places to be for celeb spotting!

The heat is on as ice cream workers go on strike in Spain

Just as Spain's hot summer weather finally kicks off, workers at Spanish ice cream factories downed tools on Friday as negotiations freeze with the industry's employer body.

It seems that tensions between the Spanish Association of Ice Cream Makers (AEFH) and the staff working in the factories have been high for some time. Reportedly workers have been on a go-slow since June 28, switching off the machines for two hours per day.

 

Now the workers are pushing up the pressure on their employers, in an industry that directly affects around 2,000 to 3,500 jobs. Friday saw a 24-hour strike, which 95% of staff had promised to attend, according to Spanish general union CCOO. 

 

The reason for the strike is a stalemate over a new collective employment agreement for the sector. Apparently the previous deal expired at the end of 2010 and a new draft has been hanging around since 2011 with nothing finalized.

 

Unless a new deal is struck soon, the whole bargaining process could come to a halt as new Spanish laws put a timeline on negotiations for new industry workplace agreements. And so, workers in the sector now threaten an indefinite strike unless their demands are met.

 

Initially unions, including the CCOO and the General Workers Union, forged a plan with the AEFH, which would have kept the current workplace agreement going until end 2013. However, the CCOO said industry owners had treated that plan with "contempt".

 

The union said in a statement, "We are open to dialogue but not in exchange for making returning workers to the stone age."

 

"If they want to avoid this strike, they need to prepare a reasonable and coherent proposal".

 

Companies most affected by the strike are Menorquina-Kalise, La Jijonenca and Farggi.

 

With July and August the hottest months of the year in Spain, ice cream could possibly end up in short supply. A chilling thought indeed.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353808

Spanish summer is finally here as heat wave hits

It feels like a long time coming, but after a cool spring, and talks of a summer that might not even happen in 2013, southern and central Spain are now feeling the heat.

The meteorological agency has issued an alert as the heat wave currently hits across a large portion of the country, saying it could last up to 10 days in some areas.

Spain's weather agency, AEMET said on Thursday that temperatures could climb as high as 42 degrees Celsius in the interior of the south west of the country.

Castile and León, Galicia (except for the far north), and the Ebro Valley, are likely to be experience temperatures around 34 to 38 degrees. 

However, the rest of the country is set to simmer between 28 and 34 degrees, and the Canary Islands are likely to boil in temperatures of 35 degrees up from July 9 onwards.

According to forecasters, with a high pressure system slowly making its way north towards the British Isles, it will be at least a week before things get more comfortable again.

Airline must pay up for a damaged bag, despite their general terms & conditions

We've all been through it when traveling.  Luggage mishandled and thrown about, dented suitcases.  Well, in this case a Spanish judge has ruled that the airline, Vueling, must pay compensation to a passenger for his damaged luggage.

According to Spain's El Correo newspaper, the case was heard at the Commercial Court of Bilbao recently, and the judge ordered the airline to pay €95 ($120) to the passenger.

This ruling was handed down by the judge despite a claim from the carrier that according to their general terms and conditions, they weren't liable for costs.

However, the court stated that Vueling had abused that clause, and chose to rule in favor of the passenger.

In the ruling, the judge also said terms were "not negotiated" with the passenger but were simply "imposed".

While a small win in terms of money, it does come after the passenger has repeatedly pressed Vueling for compensation.

Iñaki Velasco of the consumer rights organization EKA-OCUV, who acted for the plaintiff, said that this case has set an important precedent:

"From now on Vueling won't be able to hide behind this general condition in its contract to avoid its responsibilities."

Ibiza firemen free German tourist from the clutches of a stainless-steel sex toy

A German tourist got into trouble when using a steel sex toy and he went to the hospital. It took Ibiza firemen two hours to cut through the metal ring, into which the man had placed his ... er ... equipment.

The firemen were called out at 10 pm on Wednesday after the medics at Ibiza's Can Misses hospital in Spain's Balearic Islands found they just didn't have the right tools to do the job.

The delicate operation was undertaken in the casualty ward of the hospital in Ibiza, with firemen using buzz-saws to free the tourist from the steel sex toy, into which the man had placed his penis and testicles.

The firemen reportedly needed two changes of battery, along with a second rotating blade for their buzz saw in order to complete the operation.

Apparently the two-hour operation was "very complex", because the man became "more swollen" as time went by.

The sex toy was described as measuring 15cm in diameter and consisted of some kind of "armor-plating."

It is not known how the man, a 51-yr-old German, got to the hospital, but apparently he complained a lot during the delicate operation, and it was necessary to administer a local anesthetic.

Apparently after an overnight stay in the Urology department, the man felt fine and was discharged late on Thursday morning.  Hopefully he won't do that again...

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353772

Spanish Room Mate hotel chain offers free WiFi to go

Spanish Room Mate hotel chain offers free WiFi to go:

For those who need their Internet while travelling, a Spanish hotel chain is offering a brand new free service, allowing guests to access the Internet not only in the hotel, but also while out and about in Spain.. read more

Rumors of hidden cash in building rubble get people digging in Lleida, Spain

A building began collapsing in the city center of Lleida, Spain on June 17. Two weeks ago, it finally completely gave way. This week rumors started that there was a pile of cash hidden in the pile of rubble and that's when people started digging.

The building, located at the corner of Companyia and Cavallers Street in Lleida sank partially on June 17. 

 

Two weeks ago, it finally completely collapsed, and on Wednesday this week, a rumor started circulating, causing dozens of people to risk life and limb on a merry and dangerous treasure hunt in the ruins.

 

According to 20minutos, the rumor stated that there as €3,000 ($4,000) in cash buried in the rubble and with the current economic crisis in Spain, it sounded like a dream come true to the citizens of Lleida.

 

Head of Civic Safety in Lleida's town hall, Sara Mestres, told the media: "As far as the city police know, nothing has been found."

 

She added that she was surprised how quickly the rumor spread and that she had no idea how it had started.

 

In the meantime, Mestres has asked the property's owner to increase surveillance on the rubble, and city police are attempting to disperse any crowds from the scene.

 

A clearance operation has now been started to remove the rubble and take it to a landfill nearby. The operation is expected to be finished within two or three days.

 

In the meantime, those who can, dig. Hey, you never know, right?

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353740

World debut of Firefox 'ZTE Open' smartphone happens in Spain

In a world first, consumer sales of the smartphone powered by the Firefox operating system have launched in Spain. Mozilla joined with Spain's Telefónica and the Chinese company ZTE to launch the new handset.

The new Firefox phone, named ZTE Open, went on sale on Tuesday and runs on a Firefox system developed by the Mozilla Foundation, an organization that campaigns for open development of the online world.

Costing €69 ($90), the new phone enters a market dominated by Apple and Google whose iOS and Android programs are in 90% of smartphones.

Telefónica's Chief Operating Officer José María Álvarez Palette said in a statement:

"We believe that smartphones need to be more open and that the Web is the platform for making this possible. Consumers should not be locked to any one system but have the choice to consume the content they want and the flexibility to be able to take it with them when they change devices. This week marks a key turning point for the industry as we launch the first commercial Firefox OS devices in Spain. This is just the beginning as we bring Firefox OS to more and more of our markets across an expanding range of smartphones.”

The company reportedly plans to sell Firefox OS devices in other markets, including Venezuela and Colombia, in the "coming weeks".

Dai Wenhong, VP of ZTE Corporation said:

“We are honored to partner with Telefónica and Mozilla to launch our first Firefox OS phone, the ZTE Open. Packed with powerful features, it’s totally a new experience for smartphone users. As one of the top five smartphone manufacturers in the world, ZTE is devoted to provide more options for global customers and let everyone enjoy splendid life via advanced technology.”

Deutsche Telekom will also be getting involved in the project and Claudia Nemat, Board member for Europe and Technology stated on Mozilla's website:

“We are excited that with the upcoming launch in Poland Deutsche Telekom is leading the go to market for the Firefox OS mobile device."

“The launch of the first Firefox smartphones in Europe is an important step on the way to more innovation and to more competition between the different ecosystems. We rely on open platforms because we want to create freedom of choice on behalf of our customers.”

According to Mozilla chief operating officer Jay Sullivan, the new phone would stimulate a "new wave of innovation for the web".

About the smartphone:

The ZTE Open has a 3.5-inch 480x320-pixel touchscreen, 3.2MP camera, 256MB RAM, and 512MB flash memory boosted with an included 4GB microSD card. The phone has calendar, camera, email, FM radio, messaging, Nokia mapping and the Firefox browser.

According to Telefónica, the ZTE Open is the first of a series of Firefox OS devices to be launched this year.

While the initial online reviews of the phone are mixed, most of them did admire the low price, especially in the current economic crisis. With current youth unemployment at 56.4%, and overall unemployment at nearly 27% as of May 2013, affordable options are always welcome.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353669

Gibraltar complains of four Spanish jet planes buzzing territory illegally

In the latest incident in the tensions between Gibraltar and Spain, four Spanish jet planes buzzed the tiny British-held territory on Wednesday, entering the airspace apparently without permission.

Digital Journal reported recently on the problems caused by the Guardia Civil boat reportedly shooting at a jet skier in the waters off Gibraltar.

Spain explained that their boat was pursuing a possible smuggler, but said they did not fire. 

UK Prime Minister David Cameron apparently had words with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy over the problems.

Now yet another incident has caused upset to the tiny UK-held territory, with Gibraltarians complaining to London on Wednesday that four Spanish air force jets had entered the territory without seeking permission.

The government of Gibraltar issued a statement, saying that four Matador jets, belonging to the Spanish air force, had entered its airspace from the northwest on Wednesday, apparently en route to an aircraft carrier about 12 nautical miles southeast of the territory.

The statement said, "At no time did the aircraft make contact with Gibraltar's air-traffic control and the Spanish air traffic authorities in Seville gave no warning of the aircrafts' approach."

On top of this, apparently air traffic controllers at Sevilla airport had delayed the departure of a British Airways flight to London from Gibraltar for 12 minutes, to ensure safe take off during the fly-over.

Once again, Gibraltar is calling on Britain "to take up the matter of this military incursion into the airspace of Gibraltar at the highest diplomatic and military levels."

Besides the recent jet ski incident, in December last year, Digital Journal reported that a British MP, Bob Stewart, had accused Spain of "an act of war," after Spanish naval ships repeatedly entered the territorial waters of Gibraltar.

Commons Leader Andrew Lansley said two Spanish naval vessels had entered the waters off Gibraltar and at the time Sewart told MPs: "May I gently remind the House that an illegal incursion into British Gibraltarian sovereign waters is actually, technically an act of war?"

'What is happening at the moment is wrong and we should do something about it."

While Britain has held Gibraltar since 1713, Spain still wants the territory returned.

According El Mundo, Gibraltar believes it has jurisdiction over three nautical miles around the Rock, and does not recognize Spain's sovereignty over this water. Spain insists that under the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht Britain only has sovereignty over the waters of the harbor itself.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353668

Baby born in Spanish hotel due to hospital blunder

A woman in Galicia, Spain traveled to the hospital, as her contractions were "at first every four minutes, then every three." However, the hospital said she was not in labor and sent her home.

Despite the frequency of Margarita's contractions, the doctors at Hospital Virxe da Xunqueira in Cee, La Coruña, in their infinite wisdom, sent her away.

However, as the family's home in Merexo is quite some distance from the hospital and it was already 9pm on Sunday night, Margarita and her partner decided to stay over for the night at Hotel Insua.

She told regional daily La Voz de Galicia, "I realized we weren't going to make it very far."

Not far indeed, as it turns out that baby Marina was born just two hours later in room 216.

Despite the fact that the hotel is only a few hundred meters from the hospital, the couple were told that it would take 25 minutes for an ambulance to arrive, so there was no choice but to have the baby in the hotel room.

Manuel, the new father, said that he was managing to keep a sense of humor about the whole thing, but that he was a little on edge, due to "two days with no sleep".

The 35-year-old mother, Margarita, who has two other children, was said to be "tired" but otherwise fine after giving birth to healthy, 2.78kg baby Marina.

It seems hotel staff was unaware of the events in room 216 until doctors and an ambulance crew turned up to take the newborn and her mother to the hospital.

"Because it's not everyday something like this happens," Pilar Insua, owner of the hotel sent flowers to the family and invited them to stay at Hotel Insua free of charge to celebrate baby's Marina's first birthday.

The hotel even posted an photo of the baby on their Facebook page.

As to the registration of the birth, the medical report merely states "born Avda Finisterre, 82" (the hotel's address), as if nothing out of the ordinary happened.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353613

Skeleton in scuba gear sparks mystery in Spain

A skeleton wearing a black and grey wetsuit, flippers and a carrying a backpack has been found floating in the Ibiza canal near Alicante, Spain. Carrying a Moroccan passport and a whole load of cash, police are trying to establish the person's identity.

The skeletal body was found by the crew of the yacht "Yaiza", 40 miles from Calpe, in a stretch of sea which separates the mainland city of Alicante from the island of Ibiza in the Balearic Islands. Spanish national daily El País reported on Tuesday that the skeleton was wearing a wetsuit, flippers and waterproof clothing, and was also carrying a backpack containing a Moroccan passport and cash.  

 

The body was collected by a Guardia Civil vessel and has been taken for forensic autopsy at the Alicante Institute of Legal Medicine.

 

Investigators are now attempting to trace the identity of the person using the items found with the body. Amongst the clues was a backpack bearing the logo "Keep Moving." On opening the backpack, police found a mobile phone, clothing perfectly preserved in waterproof packaging, a wad of cash worth €540 ($700) and a Moroccan passport. 

 

While the skeleton was wearing scuba clothing, no oxygen bottles were found. 

 

According to police, the currents and sea creatures in the area were responsible for stripping the body of flesh and reports stated that "not an ounce" remained.

 

While the passport was issued to a Moroccan man named Abdelaziz Elfayafi, born January 8, 1989 in Imzouren, it has not yet been officially confirmed that the body is indeed Elfayafi. 

 

However, police are theorizing that the victim may have been an immigrant attempting to cross the Strait of Gibraltar from Morocco to Spain. The body could have been swept by the currents to the location in which it was discovered. 

 

The city of Imzouren is small, with around 100,000 residents and located in the Rif region of northern Morocco, near Al Hoceima. According to police, thousands have emigrated from that area in recent years hoping for a better life abroad.

 

If the body does indeed belong to Elfayi, it seems that he has a profile on LinkedIn, the networking site, which shows him as holding an Accountancy and Information Management degree. 

 

Police found his curriculum vitae posted on several Internet sites, indicating that Elfayi speaks Arabic, French, English and Dutch, and reportedly his online information was last updated around a month ago. 

 

According to the Guardia Civil, there is no record of Elfayi in the Spanish databases and they will continue their inquiries with the help of authorities in Morocco.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353574

Holy smoke: Pot found on bishop's plot in Tenerife, Spain

A man has been arrested in Santa Cruz in Spain, after police found a marijuana plantation on land belonging to the bishop of Tenerife. Apparently the church was unaware of what the man, who had permission to use the land, was growing there.

After a series of anonymous tip-offs in June, police staked out the plot of land, which is in the heart of the island's Anaga mountains.

The investigating officers then discovered marijuana plants growing in what was formerly used as a vegetable garden. Reportedly the crop was shielded from view by some plastic sheets stretched over a wooden frame.

The police arrested the 27-year old, identified only by the initials R.C.H., when they found him watering the plants. He later confessed to owning them.

It was confirmed later by local police that the land is part of the diocese of the bishop of Tenerife, assigned to the parish of Our Lady of the Snows of Taganna.

R.C.H. had a written agreement to cultivate the land, dated April 1, 2012, but the plants he was cultivating were not quite what the bishop had in mind.

Marijuana is decriminalized in Spain. This means that selling cannabis is a criminal offense punishable by law in any quantity.

Buying anywhere, possession and consumption in a public place constitutes a misdemeanor and is penalized with a fine and confiscation.

Growing the plant on private property for personal use, and consumption by adults in a private space is not illegal. However, growing on a large scale, and on another person's property, as in R.C.H.'s case is against the law.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353543

Spain says 'no' to Snowden asylum, Europe may be a problem generally

On Tuesday, Spain's Foreign Minister José Manuel García-Margallo completely ruled out any chances of asylum for Edward Snowden in Spain. Other European countries also have a problem with the request.

It was reported on Tuesday that via the Russian consulate in the Moscow airport, Edward Snowden, the NSA whistleblower, had applied to a total of 21 countries for political asylum.

In a statement to the media at Spain's Parliament, the minister said that according to Spain's asylum laws, people could only apply for asylum in Spain, if they were already on Spanish soil.

"For an asylum petition to become a petition that the government could study, in other words for it to be legally admissible, it has to be made by a person who is in Spain," he said, adding that he actually had no knowledge of an application being made. 

As Snowden is currently trapped in the transit zone of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport, this is obviously "not the case".

García-Margallo further said the Spanish Government was not looking into the matter as there were no judicial grounds on which to do so.

It turns out that other European countries have a similar problem. Norwegian deputy justice secretary Paal Loenseth told the state broadcaster NRK:

"Delivering an application for asylum from abroad is in principle not allowed."

"Applying for asylum should be done on Norwegian soil. According to normal procedures ... his demand will be denied."  

Poland's Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski also stated that Snowden's asylum request had been turned down, saying there were faults but not elaborating on them.

The countries that Snowden has applied to are: Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Cuba, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Poland, Russia, Spain, Switzerland and Venezuela.

Russia would accept Snowden, if he drops all further leaks which may damage the US.

Snowden remains holed up in the transit area of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport, where he has been since fleeing Hong Kong over a week ago, in the company of Sarah Harrison, a legal representative of WikiLeaks.

Meanwhile the scandal over the worldwide surveillance by the NSA continues to grow as more information is revealed from Snowden's leaks.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353542

Catalan cop jailed for revenge on tow trucks after own car towed

A policeman in Barcelona had his own car towed away, not once, but twice. He decided to get revenge by fining four municipal tow trucks for allegedly jumping red lights, and now faces a jail sentence and fine for his crime.

On Monday the prosecutor asked for five years in prison for an agent of the Guardia Urbana (urban guard) in Barcelona who had falsely accused four tow trucks of skipping a red light, purely in revenge for his own parking offenses. Turns out he had parked in front of his own home, where parking was illegal.

In court on Monday the accused agent, Francesc C.O., alleged that he did not remember anything because he was sick, and that shortly after the events in question, he was receiving treatment for depression. He said that he was in a difficult emotional rut, after breaking up with his partner.

According to the prosecutor, the accused had acted in retaliation because the municipal tow truck had towed away his vehicle in November 2010 and February 2011 due to illegal parking.

The court stated that in revenge, the man had filed a total of tour penalties against municipal tow trucks between December 2010 and February 2011, accusing each of skipping a red traffic light, despite the fact that this was not the case.

In fact, it turns out that some of the tow trucks were actually parked in garages on the days that the fines were given, while other tow trucks were in a totally different area of the city at the time written on the fine document.

The prosecutor asked for five years imprisonment and disqualification of the agent, for continued perjury in official documentation. It was found that his performance attacks "the public trust" and "confidence of society" as well as the "evidence" of public documents.

The resulting sentence was 18 months in jail, a suspension for a year and a half and a fine of 450 euros.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353515

Spanish police bust 2 Chinese sex slave rings in Madrid

Spanish police stated on Monday that two rival Chinese sex rings have been busted in Madrid. The rings brought women, including minors, from China with the promise of high-paying jobs.

The sex rings then forced the women into prostitution.

The sting operation, which was carried out in cooperation with French police, has resulted in the arrest of 26 suspects in Spain and 25 in France as well as "the liberation of 25 victims", according to a police statement.

The statement further read:

"The victims, some of them minors, were recruited in their homeland with the promise of a job in Spain with a monthly salary of over €4,000 ($5,000)."

The Chinese women arrived in Spain on fake visas and were charged between €12,000 and €14,000 ($15,600 and $18,200) for the trip, a portion of which had to be paid before they left China.

Rather than the promised high-paid job, once in Spain their passports were seized by the rings and the women were kept in tiny, windowless rooms in Parla, a southern Madrid suburb.

Police stated that the women were then forced into prostitution for at least a year and had to turn over 40% of their income to the rings.

The police statement added that the two rival rings owned 11 properties, with a combined value of around €2.75 million. Officers seized €3,500 euros and 15,000 Chinese yuans (€1,800) in cash along with several weapons and four cars.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353498

Illegal, unlicenced Chinese medicine seized by Spanish police

A spokesman for the Spanish police announced on Saturday that they had seized hundreds of thousands of packs of illegal medicines from China and India, including slimming products, erection aids and anabolic steroids.

The statement read that the Guardia Civil had "seized more than 250,000 units of illegal medicine, mostly related to erectile dysfunction, slimming and abortion practices."

Reportedly around a quarter of the seized unlicensed and illegal drugs were from India and more than half were sourced from China, which the Guardia Civil state were mainly destined for the large Chinese community living in Spain.

The medicines were seized during three weeks of raids at airports and shops in Spain, following an operation in 30 countries which was coordinated by the international and European agencies Interpol and Europol.

26 websites selling the unauthorised medicines, which the police say are "potentially harmful to health" were shut down during the exercise.

Police also reported on June 23 that a network, selling sports doping products imported to Spain from Greece, China and Portugal, had been broken up. 84 people were arrested and hundreds of thousands of doses of anabolic steroids and other drugs seized.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353423